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The Zodiac Killer, JonBenét Ramsey, D.B. Cooper—unsolved mysteries that still haunt investigators and fascinate the public.
When people think of Jeffrey Dahmer's crimes, they inevitably picture the place where most of them occurred: Apartment 213 at the Oxford Apartments, 924 North 25th Street in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This unassuming one-bedroom apartment became the site of some of the most horrific crimes in American history, and its story remains a dark chapter in Milwaukee's past.
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The Oxford Apartments was a modest, three-story brick building in a working-class neighborhood on Milwaukee's west side. Built in the early 20th century, it housed dozens of tenants over the decades—families, single workers, and retirees trying to get by. There was nothing about the building itself that suggested it would become infamous.
Jeffrey Dahmer moved into Apartment 213 in May 1990, paying $300 per month for a one-bedroom unit on the second floor. The apartment was small—roughly 450 square feet—with a living room, bedroom, kitchenette, and bathroom. For the next 15 months, this space would become a chamber of horrors that neighbors couldn't have imagined, even as warning signs accumulated all around them.
Looking back, it's staggering how many red flags were present—and how consistently they were ignored or dismissed. Neighbors in the Oxford Apartments and the building next door reported a constellation of disturbing phenomena:
The Smell: Perhaps the most persistent complaint was the overwhelming stench emanating from Apartment 213. Neighbors described it as a combination of rotting meat, chemicals, and death. Dahmer's explanations varied: he told some neighbors his freezer had broken and meat had spoiled; he told others he had killed animals; he claimed he was conducting taxidermy experiments. The smell was so pervasive that it permeated the hallways and nearby apartments, yet building management never adequately investigated.
Strange Noises: Residents reported hearing power tools running at odd hours—circular saws buzzing late into the night. There were also unexplained thumping sounds and, occasionally, what sounded like muffled cries or struggles. In the tight quarters of the apartment building, these sounds traveled through thin walls, creating an atmosphere of unease that many tenants felt but couldn't quite articulate.
Dahmer's Increasingly Erratic Behavior: Those who encountered Dahmer in the building noticed his deteriorating condition. He was often drunk, sometimes barely coherent. He would arrive home late at night with young men who were never seen leaving. He became more reclusive, avoiding eye contact and conversation. His apartment was always locked, the blinds always drawn.
When Milwaukee police finally entered Apartment 213 on the evening of July 22, 1991, they were unprepared for what they would find. Tracy Edwards, who had escaped from Dahmer's apartment with handcuffs still dangling from one wrist, had led them there. What Officer Rolf Mueller discovered when he opened Dahmer's refrigerator would haunt him for the rest of his life.
The apartment contained evidence of 11 murders:
In the Refrigerator and Freezer: Human heads, hands, and genitalia were carefully preserved. Some were wrapped in plastic; others were simply placed on shelves among more mundane items like condiments and beverages. The casual juxtaposition of human remains with everyday household items was particularly disturbing to investigators.
In the Bedroom: A 57-gallon blue barrel filled with decomposing body parts sat in the corner. Three more severed heads were found in the freezer. On the bed and nightstand were Polaroid photographs—hundreds of them—documenting Dahmer's murders in graphic detail. These photos would later become crucial evidence, as they showed the progression of his crimes from start to finish.
Throughout the Apartment: Investigators found an array of tools and chemicals Dahmer had used to dispose of his victims: a large kettle he used to boil flesh off bones, a circular saw for dismemberment, acid he used to dissolve bodies, and various surgical instruments. There were also personal effects belonging to victims—wallets, identification cards, jewelry—items Dahmer kept as trophies.
The Shrine: Perhaps most chilling was Dahmer's plan to construct a "temple" or shrine using the skulls and skeletons of his victims. He had purchased a black table and was painting skulls black and gold to arrange around it. This shrine, he later told investigators, would give him a place to sit and "feel the power" of his victims.
After Dahmer's arrest in July 1991, the Oxford Apartments became an immediate focal point of macabre curiosity. News crews camped outside; tourists drove by slowly, taking pictures. Remaining residents were traumatized—many had unknowingly lived mere feet away from the murders. Some had even complained about the smell, never imagining its true source.
The building's owner faced impossible circumstances. No new tenants wanted to move in, and many current residents broke their leases. The building became financially untenable and a constant reminder of horror for the community.
In November 1992, after local groups raised $325,000 to purchase the building, it was demolished. The demolition was carried out carefully, with community input about how to handle the site. Some victims' families wanted the lot left empty as an informal memorial; others wanted something positive built in its place.
Today, more than three decades after Dahmer's arrest, the lot where the Oxford Apartments stood at 924 North 25th Street remains empty. It's a grass lot, occasionally mowed, surrounded by other residential buildings and small businesses. There is no marker, no plaque, no official acknowledgment of what happened there.
This emptiness is intentional. The community has consistently rejected proposals to build on the site, whether housing, commercial development, or even a memorial garden. For many, the empty space serves as a kind of absent memorial—a deliberate void that acknowledges the horror without glorifying it.
Some neighbors avoid walking past it. Others barely notice it anymore, the trauma having been absorbed into the neighborhood's landscape and history. Tour companies occasionally include it on "dark tourism" routes, though most locals discourage such visits as disrespectful to victims and their families.
His Grandmother's House (West Allis, Wisconsin)
From 1982 to 1988, Dahmer lived with his grandmother, Catherine Dahmer, in West Allis, a Milwaukee suburb. During this period, he committed several murders, bringing victims to the house when his grandmother was away or asleep. He would dispose of bodies in the basement or nearby dumpsters. The house, a modest single-family home, still stands as a private residence. Current owners have no connection to Dahmer and understandably wish to be left alone. The house is occasionally featured in true crime tours, to the frustration of the neighborhood.
Bath, Ohio Childhood Home
Dahmer's childhood home in Bath, Ohio, was where he committed his first murder in 1978—killing hitchhiker Steven Hicks shortly after his high school graduation. The house stood for decades as a private residence, with several owners trying unsuccessfully to sell it without its notorious history affecting the price. In 2023, after years of difficulty finding buyers willing to live with the home's past, it was finally demolished. The lot is now empty, like the Oxford Apartments site—another geographic absence marking Dahmer's crimes.
The phenomenon of "dark tourism"—visiting sites associated with death, tragedy, or atrocity—has existed for centuries, but Dahmer-related sites have become particularly contentious examples. Companies offer "Milwaukee Crime Tours" that stop at the empty lot where the Oxford Apartments stood, Dahmer's favorite bars, and locations where victims were last seen.
Arguments against such tourism include:
Arguments in favor include:
Most ethicists and victims' advocates fall somewhere in the middle: acknowledging that there can be educational value in understanding true crime, but emphasizing the importance of centering victims' stories and respecting families' wishes.
The story of Apartment 213 is not just about Jeffrey Dahmer's crimes—it's about how those crimes were able to continue for so long despite numerous warning signs. It raises questions about:
These questions don't have easy answers, but they're worth asking. The empty lot at 924 North 25th Street stands as a reminder not just of what happened there, but of what we might learn from it.
